


Flowers and Cemeteries

by kvaerx



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Canonical Character Death, F/M, Major Character Death is Cousland parents, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:47:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27593656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kvaerx/pseuds/kvaerx
Summary: From the prompt: “Sometimes I steal flowers from your garden on my way to the cemetery, but today you’ve caught me and have demanded to come with me to make sure the “girl is pretty enough to warrant flower theft” and I’m trying to figure out how to break it to you that we’re on our way to a graveyard” AUI felt like there should have been some more mourning from a Cousland warden at the beginning of Origins. Here goes.
Relationships: Leliana/Male Warden (Dragon Age), Male Cousland/Leliana (Dragon Age)
Kudos: 4





	Flowers and Cemeteries

It was earlier than usual when Leo started on his way to the cemetery. His window was spiderwebbed with frost and his breath steamed in the chill air of the stairwell. He would have preferred to leave later, when things had warmed up, but he had to meet with Alistair and Morrigan to settle it once and for all if they were going to Redcliffe or not before noon. He’d promised himself that the cemetery was always the first thing he did every day and he intended to hold that promise.  
On the outside of the building, rubbing his hands together and blowing on them to keep warm, he caught sight of the flowerbed. The other units had winter decorations in their windows or outside their doors. Some still had bikes chained to the railing. But the unit on the end was always unadorned except for the single planter. There were some sort of white flowers that grew there year round. When the snows fell, the green of their vines and the red in the center of the flowers would be the only spot of color in a white landscape. For now, they were noticeable because the white petals stood out among the dead gray leaves on the ground and the muddled gray of the morning sky.  
Leo stopped in front of the planter. He took a single flower sometimes. He liked to lay it at their grave on days when something important was going to happen or had already happened. It was never very often. It helped to hide his theft if he didn’t take so many flowers. It also helped him feel less guilty about it. He didn’t know who lived here; whoever it was didn’t interact with the other denizens of the building and they never seemed to have any lights on when he passed by the window.  
He reached out and broke a single flower off from the stem.  
From behind him, he heard the cry of a raven. The door swung open, pushed aside as the unit’s inhabitant stepped out. He saw legs first, black jeans that were somehow both skin tight and covered with pockets. Next he saw a dark jacket with some sort of leather reinforcement on her shoulders that looked less like shoulder pads and more like custom made armor.  
Leo took a step back and ran a hand through his hair, more brown than blond in the gray light.  
“What are you doing?” the woman asked.  
Leo held up the single flower. His heart was a furious drum inside his chest. All of a sudden, he felt like a child again, caught by Nan in the kitchens destroying something with Barkspawn. “Flower,” he said. He didn’t know if he should run away or stay put and try to explain himself. He could try and argue, it was only a single flower after all. Although, the stories he had been told always had horrible punishments for seemingly small actions. Those were only children’s stories, but there was a strange prickle running along the back of his neck.  
The woman said nothing. Instead, she quirked an eyebrow at him. The movement only reinforced his guilt. Perhaps it would be better to apologize.  
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m really sorry. It’s just that… I’m going to take it to… to.” Leo felt a lump rise in his throat. He’d never explained what he did to anyone. Even Fergus didn’t know that he visited the graves of their parents every day or that he was the one who sometimes left the white flowers there. Wherever Fergus was, at least. “I…” he tried again. But the words didn’t come. They’d died so recently and he was trying to come to terms with it.  
But despite his verbal floundering, something softened on the woman’s face. “I understand.” She turned and locked the door. “You may keep the flower, but I want to come with you to see if this girl is beautiful enough to warrant your theft.”  
Relief washed over Leo. It felt like the perfect escape from having to explain the things he couldn’t find words for. He set off for the cemetery again hardly feeling the cold.  
Only when they were halfway there did he fully realize what she had said. He froze again. The light was displaying the person now, but he didn’t move. He had no idea how he could explain it. She thought he was going on a date, or at least meeting up with someone. How was he supposed to correct her? He couldn’t just tell her that they were actually headed to a cemetery. Maybe Fergus could play that off as something humorous, but then he’d always been the charismatic one. Leo either rambled or couldn’t get the words out. It was even worse now.  
He should just try to say something. It wasn’t fair not to.  
“It just hit me,” Leo said. “About the flower I mean.” His mouth was so dry. “When you said… It’s not…”  
Mercifully, she didn’t let him flounder about searching for the words. “I’m sorry. I did not mean to assume. A handsome man then.”  
Somehow, that had gone even worse than Leo had thought it would. But he darted across the street just in time before traffic started moving again. He wondered if he could run away. On first glance, her shoes were very fancy, but a second glance proved them to look unexpectedly practical. He didn’t think he could outrun her. He was quite good at long runs, but she looked fast.  
They’d gone two more blocks. The cemetery was the next right. They were leaving the main part of town, but she was probably assuming that was where his date lived.  
“Cemetery!” Leo exclaimed. “Cemetery!” The word was so much easier the second time.  
“What?” As he took in her confused expression, he realized that her hair was red. He might have laughed at himself; he was awful with people.  
“Cemetery. I’m going to the cemetery.” He turned the corner and pointed to the sign. “I’m Leo Cousland.”  
“Cousland?” He saw the exact moment the realization hit her. She would have known all about the murders from the news. He probably wasn’t mentioned in any of the stories though. After all, Duncan had whisked him away so quickly. It was probably for the best through, Howe was no doubt trying to track him and Fergus down. The laugh about himself that he might have given died in his throat and the cold seemed to press in around him.  
“I’m Leliana.” Her hand was extended. He shook it. “I know after what happened, you’ll need help. That’s why I’d like to come along.”  
Help would be nice, he supposed. Finding a way to defeat the Blight and maybe even to prove Howe guilty would be a lot of work. Leo nodded and together they set off to the cemetery.

**Author's Note:**

> Apologies if Leliana is a bit ooc for Origins. I've been playing a lot of Inquisition recently.


End file.
